Operations Team Leader

Job Title: Team Leader

Advertised Salary: £30,535 + £4k Inner London Allowance per annum

Location: Enfield Lock, Ordnance Road, Enfield EN3 6JG

We are the charity who look after and bring to life 2,000 miles of waterways across England and Wales, because we believe that life is better by water. Every role across the Trust plays its part in transforming our canals and rivers into spaces where local people want to spend time and feel better, bringing wellbeing benefits to millions.

We are currently recruiting for a Team Leader for the East London Operations team where most of your working time is spent in our unique and wonderful outdoor environment and your daily tasks will vary and will contribute to the maintenance, conservation, and improvement of the London & South East regions waterway network primarily focused on the River Lee and River Stort. As Team Leader you will be putting operatives to work across these waterways.

Location & coverage

Reporting to the base at Enfield Lock, you will be required to work on the canal network covering the River Lee and River Stort.

See our network here: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network

As a Team Leader in the East London Operations Team, you will be responsible for liaising with external and internal stakeholders across the River Lee and River Stort .  This will be in conjunction with supporting the delivery of operational tasks on our canal network.  Your role will interact with visitors, customers, Volunteers, educational groups and the variety of others spending time with us, so it is crucial to us that as Team Leader, you are not only an organised individual who can prioritise and manage several activities to a plan, but you do so in a way that reflects our-values. (https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/refresh/media/thumbnail/35240-our-values.pdf). 

The role:

This is a demanding, busy role offering a real variety of tasks and activities. You need to be able to think on your feet, be able to work at pace and be great at responding to changing priorities. As a Team Leader you understand and believe that a diverse team provides the opportunity to come up with the best approaches and solutions together.  Your approach will need to reflect this.

The post holder will also be required to work an annualised hours system which includes working any 5 days out of 7 including statutory holidays. They will also be part of a 24-hour operational standby team responsible for providing emergency cover for the waterway.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Ensure the smooth running of the waterways.
• Active involvement in the day-to-day tasks of the team and volunteers e.g. lock keeping, water control, vegetation management, small projects, planned maintenance and actively assist the Area Operations Managers (AOMs) in the planning of tasks.
• Ensure that environmental and heritage issues are taken into consideration in all work that is undertaken.
• Assist with Health & Safety and Environmental issues, e.g. Environmental assessments, creating and reviewing risk assessments, attendance at relevant meetings and sharing information with team members.
• Deal with enquiries from members of the public - covering everything from general enquiries and complaints to individuals offering to get involved and volunteer.
• Work closely with London East Volunteer Leaders to plan activities, host corporate and public events, and build our volunteer network.
• Ordering of equipment, plant and material, and other required resources, using Trust standard processes.
• Management and recording of work notifications, including creating and completing notifications for agreed tasks.
• Ensure the waterways correctly reflect the Trust brand, including branded signage, production and use of bilingual materials.
• Support communication within the team including sharing relevant corporate messages and provide feedback from the volunteers to the Area Operations Manager to enhance the planning of works.

 About you

Skills & Experience:

• Leadership & demonstrable experience of working in a successful team.
• Strong organisational and administrative skills.
• Experience of working within a relevant environment e.g. volunteering, environmental works, customer service operations or harbour operations.
• A good communicator with excellent customer service awareness - you will be the face of the Canal & River Trust on our waterways and will handle all communication with respect.
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office packages - Word, Excel, Outlook e-mail.  We use Office 365 & MS Teams as part of our standard day to day working tools.  It is important that you are confident in using Microsoft Office and using portal devices (laptop, smartphones etc to conduct your daily activities).
• You have high standards and will demonstrate great care in the quality and standard of your work.
• Valid UK driving licence essential - you will be on call and expected to be available at short notice in emergencies.
• Some experience of manual / construction / outdoor work is preferred – we need to be confident that our working environment is an environment that you will thrive in.
• Maths and English GCSE or equivalent - desirable.
• Experience of working with volunteers - desirable.
• You will need to be self-motivated, able to meet business needs and communicate well with customers, volunteers and staff at all levels.

To Apply:  click on the "Apply for this job" button and follow the process - complete the application form & upload current CV.

If you have any questions about the role, please contact CRT.recruitment@canalrivertrust.org.uk

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient suitable applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible. 

In addition to your annual salary £30,535 + £4,000 per annum Inner London Allowance, we can offer a competitive contributory DC Pension scheme arrangement, and numerous other employee benefits.  Further details on our benefits can be found here (https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/about-us/work-for-us/our-benefits). 

We aim to represent the diverse communities we are part of and welcome applicants from across all sectors of the community. We strongly believe that a diverse workforce brings with it a diversity of ideas, thinking and ways of working which enhances what we do.

When you join the Canal & River Trust you become a member of an engaged team working to preserve our heritage for future generations.  Come and put your skills to use on our waterways.

Find out more about the work we do on our website: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/about-us